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Saturday, September 11, 2010

It is truly amazing when you sit and consider how dramatically our country has changed since September 11, 2001. In case you have been in hibernation for the last 9 years, September 11, 2001 was the day America became the target of terrorists attacks in the way of not one but two planes crashing into the World Trade Center in New York City. As a result the two towers collapsed and thousands of innocent Americans of all religions, races and social statuses perished. Throughout the nine years that has followed this tragedy America has undergone a serious evolution or some might argue regression, which has been fueled primarily by fear and pride. From Bush's now infamous Axis of Evil, to the War on Saddam Hussein Terror, the stigma that now faces many Muslims and finally the hate mongering that has followed. Through orange and red terror alerts, leading right into the election of Barack Obama and the war in Afghanistan, to the controversy surrounding what has been labeled a Ground Zero Mosque and the burning of the Qur'an, it is safe to say that our country will never be the same.

The saddest thing that has occurred since 9/11 and comparably just as tragic has been the deterioration of the spirit of unity that has always been the driving force behind this country's success. There has developed a dark sense of bitterness over the last 9 years that has been displaced and has caused our country to split into different sides. This friction has filtered down to our politics and we have allowed fear and mistrust to cause us to lose our place as the driving force behind global progression and tolerance.

Today, September 11, 2010, as we remember the victims who lost there lives in these heinous acts of terrorism, the police officers and firefighters who lost and risked there lives, the families of the victims and the former America, which existed on September 10, 2001 we must remember that initial, overwhelming desire that we the American people had shortly following the attacks. We all agreed that as our leaders declared that we were by far stronger together than we are apart. We must not forget the lesson that the attacks have served to teach us, less we allow the victims to have died in vain. Regardless of political party/ideology, race, socioeconomic status, etc the fact that we are all Americans should compel us to remember 9/11 in the context of how we have allowed it to change us and how passionate we were about being fellow Americans. It is time to again embrace that message unity as we strive to regain our place on the world stage.

A Word from The Janitor:

Although I'm a transplant like a couple million other people who live here, New York is my home. Before I even thought about living here, I had a strange connection to New York that can most likely be attributed to the fact that many Americans share the general sentiment that New York City is a symbol of America. And once you live here you start to realize that, despite the grimy and gritty day-to-day hustle and bustle on the surface, New York City is a special place. It is America's focal point for the arts, theatre, film, architecture, real estate, engineering, law, business, finance, entertainment, fashion, music, dance, food, culture, diversity, religion, science, medicine, entrepreneurship, news, media...the embodiment of the heart and soul of America all wrapped up into one spot. So with that in mind, it is not difficult to understand that when that symbol was attacked on 9/11, America's soul was damaged. From that day forward, America was changed. 9 years later, heated discussions about Mosques and burning Qur'ans let us know that the traumatic experience of 9/11 is still an open wound for many of us. But, just like the site of Ground Zero itself, I still have hope that we can rebuild from the ashes.

I've posted some pics from Ground Zero taken earlier today. Enjoy.

We invite everybody to share your experience on where you were that day and also where you think we are now as a nation almost a decade after 9/11.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~PICS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is the progress of the new World Trade Center so far; 3 floors of steel have been erected.

It is truly amazing when you sit and consider how dramatically our country has changed since September 11, 2001. In case you have been in hibernation for the last 9 years, September 11, 2001 was the day America became the target of terrorists attacks in the way of not one but two planes crashing into the World Trade Center in New York City. As a result the two towers collapsed and thousands of innocent Americans of all religions, races and social statuses perished. Throughout the nine years that has followed this tragedy America has undergone a serious evolution or some might argue regression, which has been fueled primarily by fear and pride. From Bush's now infamous Axis of Evil, to the War on Saddam Hussein Terror, the stigma that now faces many Muslims and finally the hate mongering that has followed. Through orange and red terror alerts, leading right into the election of Barack Obama and the war in Afghanistan, to the controversy surrounding what has been labeled a Ground Zero Mosque and the burning of the Qur'an, it is safe to say that our country will never be the same.

The saddest thing that has occurred since 9/11 and comparably just as tragic has been the deterioration of the spirit of unity that has always been the driving force behind this country's success. There has developed a dark sense of bitterness over the last 9 years that has been displaced and has caused our country to split into different sides. This friction has filtered down to our politics and we have allowed fear and mistrust to cause us to lose our place as the driving force behind global progression and tolerance.

Today, September 11, 2010, as we remember the victims who lost there lives in these heinous acts of terrorism, the police officers and firefighters who lost and risked there lives, the families of the victims and the former America, which existed on September 10, 2001 we must remember that initial, overwhelming desire that we the American people had shortly following the attacks. We all agreed that as our leaders declared that we were by far stronger together than we are apart. We must not forget the lesson that the attacks have served to teach us, less we allow the victims to have died in vain. Regardless of political party/ideology, race, socioeconomic status, etc the fact that we are all Americans should compel us to remember 9/11 in the context of how we have allowed it to change us and how passionate we were about being fellow Americans. It is time to again embrace that message unity as we strive to regain our place on the world stage.

A Word from The Janitor:

Although I'm a transplant like a couple million other people who live here, New York is my home. Before I even thought about living here, I had a strange connection to New York that can most likely be attributed to the fact that many Americans share the general sentiment that New York City is a symbol of America. And once you live here you start to realize that, despite the grimy and gritty day-to-day hustle and bustle on the surface, New York City is a special place. It is America's focal point for the arts, theatre, film, architecture, real estate, engineering, law, business, finance, entertainment, fashion, music, dance, food, culture, diversity, religion, science, medicine, entrepreneurship, news, media...the embodiment of the heart and soul of America all wrapped up into one spot. So with that in mind, it is not difficult to understand that when that symbol was attacked on 9/11, America's soul was damaged. From that day forward, America was changed. 9 years later, heated discussions about Mosques and burning Qur'ans let us know that the traumatic experience of 9/11 is still an open wound for many of us. But, just like the site of Ground Zero itself, I still have hope that we can rebuild from the ashes.

I've posted some pics from Ground Zero taken earlier today. Enjoy.

We invite everybody to share your experience on where you were that day and also where you think we are now as a nation almost a decade after 9/11.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~PICS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is the progress of the new World Trade Center so far; 3 floors of steel have been erected.

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